


Silent Solitary Fight

by Onehelluvapilot



Series: Tumblr prompt fics [42]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Caring Merlin (Merlin), Gen, Hiding Medical Issues, Hurt Lancelot (Merlin), Hurt/Comfort, Medical Inaccuracies, Pain
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-05
Updated: 2020-12-05
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:29:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,228
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27903733
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Onehelluvapilot/pseuds/Onehelluvapilot
Summary: Lancelot's tendency to block out pain becomes a problem when Merlin has to diagnose a possible injury to his spine.
Relationships: Lancelot & Merlin (Merlin)
Series: Tumblr prompt fics [42]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1922554
Comments: 2
Kudos: 28





	Silent Solitary Fight

While lindworms weren't generally aggressive, they were large enough to be incredibly dangerous if provoked. Arthur and the knights had ridden out to deal with one plaguing the countryside, knocking down fences and damaging crops. Merlin didn't want it killed, so he and Lancelot devised a plan to lead it somewhere safe. Unfortunately, it went a little wrong, as so many of their plans did. The rest of the knights were awoken when the lindworm tore through their camp. Lancelot jumped in front of Arthur so he wasn't trampled, since he was still waking up and wouldn't be able to move out of the way in time. For his effort saved the prince, he himself was slammed into a tree by the beast's tail.

Merlin heard him gasp as the breath was driven from his lungs. He didn't have time to note more than that as the fight continued. The warlock used his magic as much as he could to move the lindworm, since he didn't want Arthur and the other knights using their swords too much against it. They drove it about five minutes away before deciding to continue the pursuit in the morning on horseback. For the moment, they hurried back towards their now-ruined campsite and Lancelot.

The knight was still seated with his back against the tree he had been thrown into. If Merlin hadn't seen it happen though, he would have thought he had just sat down for a brief rest. There was no indication of pain on Lancelot's face, nor the kind of glassiness in his eyes that would have indicated that he was numb from a head wound. Only the fact that he hadn't stood up to follow after them showed that he was injured. The physician's assistant quickly rushed over and knelt down in front of him.

"I'm okay," Lance insisted before he could even ask what hurt. "Just winded, and I knew you had the beast handled, so I didn't need to rush to help you."

"While I appreciate your confidence, that's never stopped you from insisting on coming with me before," Merlin countered. The knight was in fact incredibly protective of him, almost as much as Gwaine was. "Seriously, where are you hurt?"

"I'm fine-" he tried to argue instead, shifting his torso slightly as if to stand up before immediately stopping. Though his expression remained stoic, it was clear that something about the movement must've hurt. Merlin's worry for his friend spiked. Lancelot's legs, bent in front of him, hadn't moved at all during the motion. If he'd hit his back in the wrong way…

"My friend, I know you're used to carrying on and pretending you aren't injured, and I know you do so both because you're afraid of showing weakness and because you don't want to worry us, but this time, please, I really need to know what hurts. If your spine is damaged at all, then we can't safely move you." At least not until Merlin found a spell that would work to heal him. "I know it's not pleasant and it's not what you're used to, but for my sake, let yourself feel the pain for now."

There was a slow, visible shift as Lancelot obeyed. It was like the opposite of watching him wrestle the pain under control, something he did far too often. His jaw tightened first, and then his brow creased. Though his breathing hadn't exactly been deep before, it now shallowed out further into little gasps. Most telling of all, he brought his legs up a little and generally curled into himself, bringing his back away from the tree.

"I'm sorry to make you do this," Merlin apologized. As much as he hated that Lancelot was too scared of being mocked or abandoned to show pain, a legacy of far too much time spent and too many injuries dealt with alone, he recognized his ability to shut himself off from it as a survival strategy and forcing him to go against that felt wrong. "Can you tell me what hurts?"

"I don't know," Lancelot said. His voice came out breathy. "It all just… aches. I can't differentiate it enough to tell if I hit my backbone."

Merlin bit his lip. He had feared that would be the case, but hoped it wouldn't come to this.

"I'll have to touch your back then, and I need you to tell me when the pain is better or worse, alright?" Lancelot nodded, though he really shouldn't have in case there was damage to his spine, and the physician's assistant reached out around him, pushing up his chainmail and shirt so he could reach skin. Long fingers probed at his upper back, and the knight whimpered. "I know. I'm sorry." Merlin moved his hand carefully down, searching for any damage. There were no breaks in the bone that he could feel, and if Lance's ragged breathing but lack of crying out was any indication, the pain was about constant. "Are there any numb spots down your back or in your legs?" He asked. "Or anywhere tingling?"

"N-no."

"Okay. That's good. I don't think there's any damage to your spine, beyond bruises. Here, you can move a little if you want to now. Lean forward against me." He coaxed the knight to put his head against his shoulder and essentially wrapped him in a very gentle hug. His hands around his back continued to search either side of his spine for injuries.

"That… that hurts!" Lancelot gasped when Merlin touched the lower right side of his back. He wouldn't have needed to say anything though, as his fingers came away wet.

"That makes sense, given that you're bleeding. Thank you for telling me." He laid Lance down on his stomach so he could tend to the wound. It wasn't too deep, thankfully. About three feet up the tree was a broken off branch, which was probably what had caused it.

"Can I stop feeling it now?" The injured knight asked with a whimper as his hands clenched into the dirt.

"Yeah," Merlin agreed, patting his arm gently. He would've pat his shoulder, except he suspected that it had the same dark purple bruising blooming on it as the entirety of his back. "If you need to shut down again to manage the pain, that's okay."

Lancelot went still and didn't make a sound as Merlin cleaned and dressed the wound, only moving when he needed to sit up for his cracked ribs to be wrapped. Percival, who had been hanging back with the other knights not wanting to interfere, brought over a bed roll before they laid him back down.

"Will he be okay?" The large knight asked softly. Lance was deep enough in his own head blocking out the pain that they didn't have to worry about him overhearing.

"Someone will need to stay with him while the rest of us go after the lindworm, but he'll be fine with some rest," Merlin said with a nod. "And you know how stubborn he is. He'll probably be insisting by this afternoon that he can ride back to Camelot."

"I'll stay with him," Elyan offered. "I didn't much care for hunting that lindworm anyway." He settled down to keep Lancelot company as he fought his silent battle, as he almost always did, with the pain.


End file.
